Thursday, 30 March 2017

Thought for the day:"I was offered a job as a noise pollution inspector. I had to turn it down."

A successful evening in Carmarthen yesterday as I reprised my role as Most Puissant Sovereign in the Military and Masonic Order of the Red Cross of Constantine (etc). 13 years since last attempting that one and enjoyed a good evening.

And so I saw some wisdom today entitled

"Life is a Curve"

At age 4 success is ... not peeing your pants
At age 12 success is ... having friends
At age 16 success is ... having a driving license
At age 20 success is ... having sex
At age 35 success is ... having money
At age 50 success is ... having money
At age 60 success is ... having sex
At age 70 success is ... having a driving license
At age 80 success is ... not peeing your pants

I suppose I will drink to that
Cheers

And thought the weather is foul - summer must be coming somewhere.. so time to put

Wednesday, 29 March 2017

I thought I would muse upon the vagaries of fashion this morning. As many who know me will attest - I am not normally the most fashion conscious person upon the planet. Value and comfort tend to be key factors in my spending practice. Two pair of shoes for £12 from Shoe zone will do me fine thank you very much. A lot of my time I wear corporate clothing - Crimson Moon or Vollsanger. I find them comfortable and inexpensive.

As a working man I was mainly in uniform which was provided and gave me little opportunity for decision making on a daily basis - in clothing that is.... Nowadays, my dark suit is for my formal meetings - primarily Masonic with the occasional Morning Suit thrown in...

So comfort and economy steer my views.. rather than sartorial elegance

Tuesday, 28 March 2017

Don't often think about reviews but the Wheatsheaf at New Milton deserved a response after spoiling an evening out.. For the last few days we have avoided eating out, but as last day down here for a few days we decided to try the pub - and I fancied the Hunter's Chicken - normally a good choice....

But..... well this is the report...

A Huge disappointment and blatantly overcharged as well”

NEW

After many satisfactory visits to this eatery over a number of years, always with my 89 year old father in law who tips blatantly (It is his way) but whose appetite is only low these days - I went with my wife and father in law this evening for a meal and a drink.

Now granted that there was a carvery and it is curry night, after a harrowing afternoon in the hospital we called in and decided on a lamb steak specifically with boiled potatoes as he cannot eat chips, and two hunter's chickens to be followed by sweet...

We have been before so paid at the bar and took a soft drink, a pint and a glass of wine to the table.... Service was slow but we were in no hurry. Only one waitress and a lad who was later identified as the Manager ( for the evening I presume).
But they were pleasant enough.

When our food arrived - the lamb was with chips and was sent back.
After enquiry it was explained that there were no boiled potatoes - though they are normally part of the carvery - and reluctantly settled upon roast potatoes of which he was only able to eat a little..

But the Hunter's Chicken came as a plate of chips with a piece of cooked chicken!!
I sent it back and five minutes later the waitress came back to inform me that though they would do it this time - they advised me that the "£25 special with wine only included the roast chicken" I pointed out that we did not have the "special" and had purchased a glass of wine separately - and had paid £38.50 for the meals - to the very waitress advising us !!!

We finally got a re-cooked version of our meal - the chips were soggy and I gained the impression that they had just re-heated them - the chicken was in a watery barbecue sauce with a piece of bacon and melted cheese ..... a sorry excuse..

I asked for a manager and was pointed to the young lad / server.. I asked him if he was the manager and had to repeat three times as he only grunted in reply - I do not know to this day if he could master the English language - I was at the bar and explained what had happened and asked if he was going to charge me for the glass of wine and Appletiser I was purchasing due to the lateness of the serving - at £7...
He grunted something that sounded like no - so I continued my meal...

Ordering the Ice Cream as it was gluten free and a sticky pudding and custard for my father in law - the serving bell (the one that the chef used to state that food is ready for serving) was rung three times and I was about to go and serve myself when it arrived...

I think it tasted alright - I was no longer hungry and did not eat.

We decided to go - and I went to the "manager" to pay for the sweets.
He said "Two sweets" and charged me £7.90
I said "No" "Ice Cream and one sweet"
He said it was £7.90
I said check your menu - Ice cream is £2.95 - Sweets £3.95 - total £6.90

He agreed - no apology - just took my money..

For an establishment serving the number of elderly in this area - this lack of care is bordering on criminality - I know my father in law would have paid, not complained and tipped heavily under normal circumstances..

I say to anyone in New Milton - "Buyer Beware" and check your bill and your change

Don't get me wrong - anyone can have a mistake, anyone can have a busy day, but customer service is about how you rectify a mistake - not how you ignore it ....

I have been in the service trade too long to accept bad service and products without mention. Even a local pub now charges substantial amounts - there is no such thing as a cheap night out - and so everyone requires supervision that can rectify mistakes and mollify a customer...

Monday, 27 March 2017

Thought for the day:"Spring is here and it seems that the flower business is blooming"

Now have three tracks listed in the Love Chronicles.. Lillie's Song - Dance for me, Tanja's Song - I said I would write you a song, and Cry of the Viinshar - Lost her to the Void.... (Schrei der Viinshar)

Friday, 24 March 2017

Thought for the day: "Been learning how to guess the weight of dogs - picked up a few pointers yesterday."

Got a sunny day for a change ... it has been so cold the last few days that I though we were heading back into winter... But we are after the solstice so I suppose this is appropriate..

In other news - I managed to lose a medal from the Black Company at the last event. It is on the sash that I wear along with my Grand Expedition regalia - and only really noticeable as missing when I put the kit on in the morning. I knew it was there on the Saturday and Sunday morning it was missing - only the ribbon - I had not noticed that it was tied to the ribbon by a cord rather than stitched on.

So a search of the site, the area where I had been foolishly running around like a mad thing with a bow and arrow, the bar area, the area where I had been attacked by monsters and demons (don't ask), and the arena where I unsuccessfully defended my Spoon and Mandolin successes of previous years - all to no avail.

But, as luck would have it, when they cleared the bar area, the medal was found!

Now - the only issue is how to get it back to me ... It seems that when LARP Con was holden, as I was unable to attend at the last minute, the Drunken Monk Teddies had to stay with me and so a Drunken Monk Bear (DMB) Novice was chosen - I do not even know if he has a name !

As we are currently looking at the Cosmology of the Crimson Moon (how you can walk in one door and out another into a different realm or time) it is clear that the poor little DMB would have to try to cross space and time to find Vollsanger.... carrying the medal of course... and here he was ready for the journey..

DMB - Novice

It seems he had no compass to help him so I thought he may do a "snoopy" and carry a globe with him instead...

And off he went..

I may have too much time on my hands ... here is the video of the start of his journey...

Thursday, 23 March 2017

Incident in Westminster yesterday as I was leaving the house - one policeman stabbed to death, three others and the perpetrator dead, the latter shot by police, and up to 40 with life changing injuries having been mown down with a car on Westminster Bridge.
With great British reserve - this is on my news feed this morning - I prefered seeing this to the images of terror that are being shown which in my view just feed the frenzy. Political statement made - now "Move on"...

In other news,

I was browsing through some motor parts sections on the internet and was prompted to have a search upon this site for an item that was described only with a part number...
And there it was among all the engine parts and wheel nuts ... Yes - a Flux Capacitor

It even had a page for description ...

Don't you love it when someone somewhere has a good sense of humour ...
Well done O'Reilly Autoparts..

And for those who are confused by this blog today - here are some clues...

Monday, 20 March 2017

Thought for the day:"If you think I'm a lousy driver, wait until you see me putt."

Back from LARP AID

It seems to be the vernal equinox - but it is miserable as anything out there and pretty cold. I spent the weekend in the Sub-tropics of Essex, and to be fair it was fairly warm for much of the time - with a smattering of sun... Warm furs still needed in the evening of course, but today is a lot wetter and colder....

About Me

From the frozen wastes of Northern Norsca, Vollsanger was a Skald of the old tradition - a Bard who was well schooled in the ancient songs and epic tales.

Coming out of the Skadi Mountains one day - he found the Crimson Moon Tavern in a glade with many strange people who had travelled great distances to meet up. The War Host!

Selling a song for a copper - writing songs on demand and entertaining the peoples of the factions. Vollsanger faces new challenges... LARP Awards Bard of the Year 2018. LARP & Re-enactment Skald.Guest Bard at the Conquest of Mythodea in Germany